Potato Gnocchi & Greens

These gnocchi are really light and fluffy, with less flour than some of the recipes featured previously. This means that they are much more delicate and slightly trickier to handle; also a bit more time consuming in terms of how gently you prepare and shape them. That said, these potato gnocchi are definitely worth the extra fluffy effort, and the sauce is delicious - packed with greens, flavour and general loveliness. Enjoy with some toasted garlic breadcrumbs or pine nuts.

Ingredients

750g Potatoes

175g Plain Flour

Salt & Pepper

1 Free Range Egg

Garlic

Frozen Peas

Kale

Half a small Onion

Green Beans

Fresh Herbs

Chicken or Veg Stock

White Wine

Lemon

Olive Oil

To make the Gnocchi – bake the Potatoes, pierced and wrapped in foil, at 225˚c for just over an hour

Let them cool down – and then peel the skins off. Put them through a potato ricer, or mash them really carefully

While the Potatoes are still hot, mix in the 150g Flour and 1 beaten Free Range Egg and some Salt & Pepper. Lightly knead the dough together and then divide into 2 or 3 pieces. With each piece, roll it into a long sausage shape, and cut it into 2cm-ish slices. Lightly shape and put each piece of Gnocchi onto a plate dusted heavily with some Polenta or Semolina or Flour. Do this with all the dough – you’ll have around 2 massive plates of Gnocchi

To cook the Gnocchi – bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add the Gnocchi and remove them with a slotted spoon as soon as they rise to the surface

You can eat them like this and dress them with a sauce immediately – but I prefer to oven bake the Gnocchi at 200˚c for 20 mins (on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper and brushed with a little Olive Oil) so they get a slightly crispy edge

To make the Sauce… Finely chop half a small Onion and crush a clove or two of Garlic. Also slice up the other Greens – Cabbage, Green Beans, Kale – and get some frozen Peas out of the freezer

Heat a large frying pan with a little Olive Oil. Add the chopped Onion and fry for a minutes or two; then add the Garlic for a minute. Add the other chopped Greens and fry for a few minutes. Add a dash of White Wine, the juice of half a Lemon and some Chicken Stock (a few ladlefuls) and cook for a minute or two. Taste the Sauce… the alcohol taste should have gone and it should taste sweet and salty at the same time – light and fresh

Season with Salt & Pepper to taste and turn the heat off. You may also want to add more Lemon juice…

Serve the Gnocchi on a plate with a couple of spoonfuls of Greens and a couple of ladles of the Sauce. Garlicky Breadcrumbs or toasted Pine Nuts would be delicious with this dish, also maybe some Tomatoes and Balsamic…